You make me feel so... Understanding Interaffectivity (NG 103)

This junior research group aims at investigating interaffectivity, i.e., emotions that emerge from social interaction. Special consideration will be given to self-referred emotion mechanisms, bodily and musical influences as well as the effects of group parameters on interaffectivity.

Contrary to Descarte’s dualism of mind and body, modern concepts postulate mulidirectional relationships between emotion, cognition, and bodily sensation. Despite those new conceptions, however, the understanding of interaffectivity is fragmentary because information from different disciplines has yet to be intergrated. The junior research group aims at bringing together in the context of three projects divergent branches of research on interaffectivity from the humanities, social sciences, psychology, and neurosciences.

To this end we seek to ascertain modulating effects of self-referred emotion mechanisms such as emotion regulation or emotion expression on interaffectivity. Moreover, the relationships between bodily states and artistic practices in dance and music will be characterized. Project 3 will focus on the influence of group parametres such as shared goals, level of cohesion, and ingroup-outgroup evaluation on emotions that emerge from social interaction. A long-term goal of this research is to contribute to the development of more holistic intervention strategies to promote interaffective competency among individuals with and without psychiatric conditions that involve deviations in empathy and interaffectivity such as autism and borderline personality disorder.

Publications

Behrends, A., Müller, S., Dziobek, I. (2012). Moving in and out of synchrony: A concept for a new intervention fostering empathy through interactional movement and dance. The Arts in Psychotherapy 39 (2). 107-116. doi: 10.1016/j.aip.2012.02.003.